Catamenial sack.



No. 807,923. PATENTED DEC. 19, 1905.

J. GRIFFITH. GATAMENI AL SACK.

APPLICATION FILED 001?. 27, 1904.

wamm UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 19, 1905.

Application filed October 27, 1904. Serial No. 230,195.

To aZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH GRIFFITH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Springfield, in the county of Clark and State of Ohio, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Catamenial Sacks, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention pertains to catamenial sacks i. e., devices for catchingand holding menstrual and other uterine discharges of women andpreventing the same from getting on the person or underclothing; and ithas for its object to provide a catamenial sack which while highlyefficient in Opera tion is simple, light, and inexpensive inconstruction and is adapted when not in use to be compactly folded.

YVith the foregoing in mind the invention will be fully understood fromthe following description and claim, when taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in whichFigure 1 is a perspective view illustrating the catamenial sackconstituting the present and preferred embodiment of my invention as thesame appears when distended and ready for use. Fig. 2 is a plan viewillustrating the sack as folded; and Figs. 3 and 4 are detail sectionstaken in the planes indicated by the lines 3 3 and 4 4, respectively, ofFig. 2.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in all of theviews of the drawings.

The catamenial sack constituting the pres ent and preferred embodimentof my invention comprises a body A, presently described in detail, andforward and rear tabs B, the said tabs being preferably of elasticmaterial and equipped with buckles O, whereby they may be readilyconnected to and disconnected from straps depending from a belt.Inasmuch as the straps and belt just mentioned form no part of myinvention, I have deemed it unnecessary to illustrate the same.

My invention chiefly resides in the body A. The said body is formed oftextile or other soft material, preferably material that issubstantially impervious to li uid, and is provided at its ends withfolds l whereby when it is opened or distended, as shown in Fig. 1,

it is adapted to serve as a receptacle for and hold absorbent material,medicated material, or the like in such manner as to enable saidmaterial to catch all of the uterine discharges of a woman and preventthe same from getting on the person or underclothing. The folds D areoppositely disposed-that is, one is turned toward the right and theother toward the left, as illustrated-and hence it will be observed thatthe sack may be collapsed and compactly folded after the manner shown inFig. 2, so as to take up but a minimum amount of space in abureau-drawer or the like when not in use.

As best shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the tabs B are disposed at the outersides of the folds D. This is advantageous, because the folds presentadditional thicknesses of material at the points where the tabs areconnected and add materially to the strength and durability of theconnections, and also because stitches (indicated by a) serve thetwofold function of securing the folds and connecting the tabs.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that while my novel catamenialsack is highly efficient in catching and holding uterine discharges itis so shaped as to conduce to the comfort of a woman when at rest orwhen walking, also that the sack is simple and inexpensive inconstruction and is well adapted to withstand the laundering necessaryto repeated use.

I have specifically described the construction of the present andpreferred embodiment of my invention in order to impart a full, clear,and exact understanding of the said embodiment. I do not desire,however, to be understood as confining myself to such specificconstruction, as such changes or modifications may be made in practiceas fairly fall within the scope of my invention as claimed.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s

The herein described catamenial sack made up of a sack-like body, ofsoft material, having oppositely-disposed folds D at its end extendingthroughout the height of said ends; said folds adapting the sack whenopened or In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand 1n presenceof two subscribing wit- 1o nesses.

JOSEPH GRIFFITH.

Witnesses:

M. S. GRIFFITH, F. V. FLINN.

